Country of Particular Concern: What it means for Nigeria

•Economic sanctions, international isolation, ban on IMF, World Bank loans, others
•Boko Haram, Al-Shabaab, others designated entities of Particular Concern in 2023

The designation of Nigeria as a “Country of Particular Concern” on religious tolerance by the government of the United States of America could come with a series of economic and diplomatic sanctions which could also engineer international isolations, investigations by the Nigerian Tribune have confirmed.

President of the United States, Donald Trump, had on Friday, announced his decision to classify Nigeria as a “Country of Particular Concern” on account of alleged genocide against Christians as he claimed that 3,100 Christians have been killed in the country.  

Information available on the website of the US State Department, www.state.gov, indicated that the punishment due to countries so designated includes: diplomatic sanctions and public condemnation by the United States government, economic restrictions, including reductions or limitations on security aid and development assistance, opposition to international loans from the IMF and others as well as international isolation and other potential economic measures.

According to findings, specific economic sanctions that could be imposed by the US on such countries include limiting or withholding economic assistance; Imposing trade restrictions or sanctions; restricting export licenses and opposing international loans or assistance from institutions like the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Other potential punishment the country could suffer include travel restrictions, which could mean that citizens of the country may be made to face travel restrictions to the US or other countries, even as the country stands to withstand damage to its credibility and integrity at the international stage.

Reports on the State Department website indicated that the CPC came into force through the International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA Act) of 1998, which requires the President to “review the status of religious freedom in every country in the world and designate each country the government of which has engaged in or tolerated “particularly severe violations of religious freedom” as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC).”

The Act defines particularly severe violations as “systematic, ongoing, egregious violations of religious freedom,” including violations such as: (1) torture; (2) prolonged detention without charges; (3) forced disappearance; or (4) other flagrant denial of life, liberty, or security of persons.”

An adjunct to that is the Wolf Act, 2016, which requires the President to “designate each country that engaged in or tolerated severe violations of religious freedom during the previous year, but does not meet all the criteria for being designated as a CPC to a “Special Watch List” (SWL).”

The same Wolf Act also allows the President of the United States to designate some organisations as “Entities of Particular Concern,” a classification that encompasses non-state actors who are seen to have engaged in religious freedom violations. The Act defines non-state actors in this category to mean “a non-sovereign entity that (A) exercises significant political power and territorial control; (B) is outside the control of a sovereign government; and (C) often employs violence in pursuit of its objectives.”

Available records indicated that the last time the US government designated countries as CPC was December 29, 2023, and the countries on the list as of that date include Burma, People’s Republic of China, Cuba, Eritrea, Iran, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Nicaragua, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan.

In the same vein, the US had designated some countries on the Special Watch List on December 29, 2023. These countries include Algeria, Azerbaijan, the Central African Republic, Comoros, and Vietnam.

Also in line with Wolf Act, 2016, the United States has designated some non-state actors as “Entities of Particular Concern” on December 29, 2023 and these include al Qa’ida affiliate Al-Shabaab, Boko Haram, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the Houthis, ISIS-Sahel (formerly known as ISIS-Greater Sahara), ISIS-West Africa, al Qa’ida affiliate Jamaat Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin, and the Taliban.

It was also confirmed that despite the classification of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia as one of the Countries of Particular Concern, the US still maintains what was described as a complex relationship with the government of Saudi Arabia.

The relationship is said to be driven by strategic interests in energy security, with Saudi Arabia being a key player in the oil sector and regional stability in the Middle East.

It was also gathered that classification of a territory as Country of Particular Concern could enable the United States to leverage diplomatic measures to promote reforms in religious harmony, counterterrorism, and human rights.

Despite the declaration as a Country of Particular Concern, the United States may utilise diplomacy, sanctions and economic incentives to encourage improvements in human rights and religious freedom in such territories, reports stated.